


Love x and x Loss

by cynicsAxiom



Series: An Imposter's Honor [1]
Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Attempted Murder, Enemies to Lovers to Enemies, Heavens Arena (Hunter X Hunter), Merman Clairvoyance, Nen (Hunter X Hunter), Other, Self-Harm
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-29
Updated: 2020-08-29
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:47:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26183665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cynicsAxiom/pseuds/cynicsAxiom
Summary: After getting "initiated" at Heavens Arena, an injured martial artist is taken in by an unassuming man named Knov. As it happens, Knov is a veteran Hunter, and agrees to train the fighter in the ways of Nen if the fighter will help him win back the money he lost gambling on arena matches. The arrangement seems simple enough. That is, until the trainee falls for Knov's other student, a mercurial (and occasionally murderous) young woman by the name of Palm Siberia.
Relationships: Palm Siberia/Original Non-Binary Character, Palm Siberia/Reader
Series: An Imposter's Honor [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2114688
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	Love x and x Loss

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure how many other Palm stans there are out there, but this one's for you!

You stumble through the sliding elevator doors and into the lobby of Heavens Arena. The entrance to the infamous battle tower is as clean and immaculate as always, but now it looks different than the first time you’d seen it. The lobby is bustling with excited youths, young men and women who’ve flocked to this strange fighter’s Mecca in order to prove their worth in the ring. Others wave tickets gleefully, unable to contain their anticipation as they wait in line to see the most intense and glorious arena fights in the world. Their joy... it makes you sick.

Slowly, you make your way through the throngs of people, all jockeying to get a spot on the roster. You remember when you first got here about a couple months ago. Thinking back on it, you probably looked and acted in much the same way as these naïve hopefuls. Now, your body bruised and battered, all you can do is keep your head down and limp through the front door and out into the freedom of the outside world.

Stepping out into the fresh sunlight, you take a deep breath in and relax ever-so-slightly. You’d been so focused on working your way up the floors that you hadn’t made time to actually go outside the entire time you’d been here. It was refreshing to feel natural light beating down on your skin, even as it made you painfully aware of the other recent beat-down you’d endured.

You’d climbed the ranks of the tower fairly quickly. You’d never had any sort of formal combat training, but had spent much of your childhood learning to mimic martial artists and combat experts you’d seen on TV and in movies. These skills, honed into a martial craft that was as effective as it was intimidating, had allowed you to make short work of the first hundred floors. And though your opponents slowly began to get more challenging as you ascended through the hundreds, you’d never have been able to anticipate the harrowing experiences that awaited you on Floor 200.

You shudder violently as the memory creeps across your mind and runs down your spine like a crawling ooze. As soon as you’d stepped off the elevator, you were overwhelmed with a sense of dread. You weren’t able to pinpoint exactly why, but something about the atmosphere up there had been... different. Almost hostile. And then, those men appeared. They were horribly disfigured, and stood at the end of the hallway, mocking you. They were filled with an unmistakably malicious intent, and their haunting smiles burned themselves into your eyes and the backs of your eyelids. Then, all at once, the atmosphere shifted again, back to a calm normal, and the men were nowhere to be seen. You were certainly shaken up, but you hadn’t come this far just to quit now. You marched right down to the desk and registered for a fight the next morning.

Suddenly feeling light-headed, you look around for a bench or something. Not too far away, you spot a small stone courtyard with seating around a large fountain. Reeling, you hobble over and sit down on the cool stone. You rest your head in your hands and screw your eyes shut, hoping the dizziness goes away on its own before your breakfast ends up on the rough tiles in front of you.

“Excuse me,” a cool, clear voice breaks through the panicked malaise of your thoughts. “Are you [Y/N]?”

Your head slowly begins to clear as you shakily look up and see a slim, pale man who looks to be in his mid-thirties. He is wearing an incredibly well-tailored suit, and a small pair of glasses sits perched at the end of his nose. He runs a hand through his smooth, black hair and smirks at you.

“That was some fight you had the other day,” he says, eyeing you.

You nod and grunt out some kind of reply, though you’re still not feeling well enough to formulate complete thoughts yet.

“I saw the whole thing,” his silky voice crooned as he rocked back on his heels. “That guy really roughed you up.”

You grimace and ask the man if he plans on taunting you like that for the rest of the day. He smiles politely and shakes his head.

“My apologies,” he says. “I’ve given you the wrong impression. I was merely trying to make conversation.”

You ask the man to go make conversation somewhere else. You’re starting to get a headache.

“I actually placed a significant amount of money on you,” he chuckles, ignoring your plea. “I was almost certain you’d lose, but I like to bet on long shots. It’s more exciting that way, I think.”

You’ve started to regain your sense of bodily control and get up from your seat. You’re tired, even after having rested in the Arena Infirmary for several days, and this guy is really starting to get on your nerves.

“No, wait!” the man calls out to you as you turn to leave.

With a sigh, you slowly turn back to face him.

“I have a question for you,” he says, a wry smile beginning to form once again on his face. “Do you know why you lost?”

You ask the man what kind of question that is. Your opponent was just more skillful than you were, and that’s all there was to it. Wasn’t it?

The man chuckles.

“Oh-ho, no,” he places a hand over his chest. “While there certainly is a massive skill gap, it’s likely not in the area in which you think it to be.”

You cock an eyebrow incredulously. You ask the man to explain himself.

“Are you familiar with _aura_?”

What, you ask, like life force?

“Yes, that’s it exactly.”

The man slides his glasses up the bridge of his nose with a finger.

“There are a number of fighters in this world who have learned a special technique which allows them to control their aura and use it in battle.”

You snort derisively. That sounds a little ridiculous to you.

“Oh, I assure you, it’s very real,” the man nods. “And I can teach you.”

This actually makes you laugh out loud. Yeah right, you tell him. And how much is that going to cost?

“Nothing at all,” he smiles, retaining his composure. “I only ask that, once I’ve taught you everything you need to know, you come back here and win a round against that asshole so I can make my money back.”

You thank the man, but decline his offer. You’re done with the arena, and you’re certainly not about to take any pointers from this sketchy rando. Besides, for all you know, this guy doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about.

“I see. I suppose it’s natural for the uninitiated to have doubts. But I know you’ve felt _Nen_ before. I saw it during your fight. Perhaps this will feel more familiar to you...”

The man looks down at the ground, his eyes obscured behind the glare from his glasses. You stare at him with confusion, unsure whether or not to walk away now or see how this plays out. Suddenly, you feel a rush of... something burst forth from where the man is standing. It’s confusing and terrifying and nerve-wracking, and in that instant you realize it feels exactly the same as when you got off the elevator. It feels like the two-hundredth floor.

The oppressive atmosphere dissipates as quickly as it came on, and the man straightens himself up once again.

“Believe me now?”

You nod in affirmation. You’re honestly amazed that such an unassuming man could produce such a threatening aura. He smiles and shrugs.

“That’s what training can do for you. Have you reconsidered my offer, then?”

You accept, though still begrudgingly.

“Don’t worry,” the man chuckles. “When we’re through, you’ll be able to thrash these guys. My name is Knov, by the way.”

The man extends a hand out toward you. You hesitate at first, but you take it and shake.

“Good,” Knov says. “Let us begin.”

***

You arrive with Knov at a penthouse apartment at the top of an impressive skyscraper. The view from up here is breathtaking. He leads you into a living room area with a wall-to-wall window facing the city. Before you, the whole urban center is sprawled out around the arena, which rises well above even the building you’re currently in. It is an undoubtedly impressive structure, and even after all you went through you still can’t help but feel in awe of the place.

Knov’s furniture is mostly classy, black leather. There is a sofa in the living room facing the window, as well as a small armchair on either side. A low coffee table sits in the middle over a white, faux-sheepskin rug. The apartment has an open layout, and you can see a bar and kitchen area over on the far side of the room. A wide staircase in the corner leads up to the penthouse’s second floor. It’s kind of a lot for you to take in all at once. Everything in Knov’s place seems to follow a black-and-white aesthetic, with the rare exception of some colorful blue and purple flowers here and there.

You ask Knov if he really lives here.

“Some of the time,” he chuckles. “I really only stay here when I feel like coming to the arena.”

Coolly and casually, Knov strides over to the wet bar and pulls out a bottle of white wine.

“A drink?” he asks, gesturing toward you with the bottle.

You think on this for a moment. You’re still not sure if you _really_ trust this guy yet, but what the hell. You could really use a drink. You accept.

Knov smirks and takes out two wine glasses, filling them up perfectly to the half-way point. He returns the bottle and brings your glass over to you.

“Here,” he says as you take the glass from him, a twinkle shimmering in his eye. “Now, why don’t you have a seat?”

He is very close to you when he says this.

You let yourself sink into one of his armchairs. The leather is smooth, and the cushioning beneath it soft and comfortable. With a swift, graceful motion, Knov sits down in the armchair opposite you, staring at you intently while idly swirling his wine glass. It’s starting to get late in the afternoon, you notice, and the shadow of Heavens Arena has grown long, stretching toward you, giving the illusion of an early dusk. You take a ginger sip of your white wine.

Knov shifts slightly in his seat. He looks as if he’s about to say something. You watch his thin lips, still curled into a smile, with great anticipation. Before he can open his mouth to speak, however, you hear the sound of footsteps descending the stairs.

“Master Knov,” you hear an odd, feminine voice say. “Are you back already?”

You look up towards the stairs to see a young woman about halfway down. Her skin is even paler than Knov’s almost sickly-looking. A long mass of scraggly black hair cascades over her shoulders and in front of her face, partially obscuring her. She’s wearing a cropped, pink dress which, for some reason, is wrinkled to hell and looks like it hasn’t been washed in several days. The two of you make eye contact at the same time, and the woman suddenly becomes very stiff.

“M-master Knov...” she stutters, her voice shaky. “Wh-who is this?”

You look back at Knov, whose nervous eyes are betraying his otherwise composed face. He turns in his seat to face the woman and offers her a weak smile.

“Ah, there you are, Palm,” he says. “I was just wondering where you’d gone off to.”

“Kn-knov...” Palm continues staring at you, her body beginning to shake visibly. “What are they doing here?”

You’re starting to get a bad feeling about all of this. Palm’s mere presence in the room seems to be putting out a heavy cloud of negative energy. Even Knov seems a little on-edge.

“This is [Y/N],” Knov gestures to you, his voice somehow maintaining its composure. “I’ve taken them on as a new student.”

“A new student?” Palm growls, her hands gripping frantically at her dress. “What do you need a new student for, Master?”

The dark energy in the room begins to get more intense.

“For training, of course. They have a lot of potential. I’d like to see them grow to meet it.”

“Am I not enough for you, Master Knov?” Palm’s voice sharpened, almost rising to a screech.

“Oh, Palm, you know that’s not it at all. I merely lost a good deal of money on this person when I last saw them fight. I intend to make it back when they fight again.”

“You saw them fight?!” Palm spits, her entire body quivering violently. “You went to the arena and didn’t tell me?!”

Knov slowly rises from his chair and, setting his wine glass down on the coffee table, begins to carefully walk toward Palm, like someone trying to quiet a feral animal.

“Well, I hadn’t made plans to go. It was sort of a spontaneous thing.”

“Spontaneous?!” Palm screams, barely able to contain her rage. “You’ve never been ‘spontaneous’ with _me_. Are you lying?!”

You’re still planted firmly in your seat, the oppressive weight of Palm’s presence striking you frozen with terror and dread. You can only watch in horror as Knov begins to climb the stairs to stand next to this maniacal, frenzied woman.

“You know I would never lie to you, Palm.”

Knov caresses the side of Palm’s face with his hand, then, with a swift motion, wraps his other arm around her waist and pulls her in, so close he could kiss her. But he does not kiss her.

Her sudden proximity to Knov takes Palm by surprise. The dark tension in the air immediately dissipates as the two embrace, Knov gripping her with his suave confidence as he knows he’s regained control of the situation, and Palm with her eyes wide open and paralyzed with shock, her malice and anger slipping away into nothingness once more.

Knov pulls away from her and you can see that wry look creep back over his face. He places his thumb on her chin and tilts her head up slightly to look into her eyes.

“Now, Palm,” Knov croons. “Why don’t you go back upstairs? I still have some business to discuss with our guest.”

“Y-yes, Master Knov. O-of course.”

Palm glances at you and, for a brief moment, you feel the full weight of her hatred drilling into your soul. But it vanishes again as she turns and walks back up the stairs.

Knov sighs and runs a hand through is hair as he comes back to the living room. He picks up his wine glass from the coffees table and sits back down in the armchair, slightly deflated, but still immaculate.

“My apologies,” he smiled tiredly. “Palm can be... a lot.”

You assure him that much was obvious, and assert you have no intention of getting involved with that whole mess. You get up to leave, but Knov calls out to you.

“Please, you have nothing to worry about. She’s really quite tame, as long as you know how to handle her.”

Knov gets up and crosses the room to you.

“Besides, as long as I’m around, it’s simple enough to keep her temper in check,” he smiles, placing a hand gently on your shoulder.

You have some misgiving about all of this, but Knov is very... persuasive. You think there might not be _too_ much harm in sticking around, at least for a little while.

“So, how about it? We’ll start training first thing tomorrow morning?”

Slowly, you nod. Knov’s smile spreads a little wider and his eyes stare into yours hungrily.

“Excellent.”

He pulls away from you and walks back over to the bar, finishing off his wine.

“I’ll have to have Palm cook up dinner for the three of us. She really is an excellent cook.”

***

You are seated at a long, glass dining table in the penthouse. Knov sits at the head, with you on the side to his right, and Palm across from you. You are trying your best not to look at her, but you can just _tell_ she’s giving you dagger-eyes.

In front of you is a plate of perfectly grilled Tilapia filets, served over a bed of fried rice, slightly browned to perfection. A vegetable medley is mixed in with the rice and, ostensibly, the whole dish should have a lemony twist to it. Of course, Palm cooked it herself, and as she apparently hates you, you haven’t yet plucked up the courage to take a bite.

Knov, on the other hand, happily digging into his meal.

“Palm, you’ve really outdone yourself this time. This fish is marvelous.”

“Thank you, Master Knov,” she deadpans, staring intently at you. You can feel her gaze boring into your skull.

“Please, [Y/N],” Knov gestures to you. “Eat. I’m sure you haven’t had a real meal in a while, what with being held up in the infirmary.”

You grimace and mumble an affirmative, bobbing your head just enough to be construed as a nod.

“The same goes for you, Palm. You haven’t even touched your food yet.”

“Oh,” she says, shaking herself from whatever twisted reverie she was indulging. “Of course.”

You feel the pressure of her staring turn away from you momentarily as she cuts up a small piece of her fish and eats it. You decide that it would likely be preferable to be poisoned and die than sit in the same room as this woman and her terrifying presence. You take a small bite of your fish as well. It’s not poisoned. You don’t die.

“There you go,” Knov flashes you a bright smile. “Doesn’t that taste good?”

You smile back at him and nod. It is, indeed, very good. Palm’s cooking is incredible actually. You turn to tell her so, and are taken slightly aback by how intensely she is staring at you once again. Her eyes almost look to be the same size as the dinner plates, and her violet irises are burning with indescribable fury. You turn back to your fish.

“You know,” Knov begins, dabbing his face with a napkin. “I’m really very excited for the three of us to train together.”

“WHAT?” you and Palm both shout in unison.

Knov shrugs nonchalantly.

“You’re still my student, Palm. Just because I aim to provide some quick training to someone new as well, you don’t get to neglect your _Nen_.”

“B-but Master!” Palm insists, clearly flustered.

“But what, Palm?”

“I’m so much more advanced than them!” she whines. “I’ve already begun working on my special technique, while _they_ don’t even know how to use _Nen_ at all!”

“That’s true,” Knov admits. “But if they’re to learn enough to defend themselves in the arena before their ninety-day preparation period is up, they might benefit from having someone else to model the training for them.”

Palm creases her eyebrows, pleading with Knov.

“I need you, Palm. Do it for me.”

Knov’s words instantly melt Palm’s hard exterior, and she turns away from him, her cheeks blushing profusely.

“Well... if you really mean it...” she muses wistfully, twirling a strand of scraggly, black hair with her finger.

Knov turns to you and gives you a subtle wink.

Somehow, it doesn’t really make you feel any better.

***

You’re lying in bed. It’s a comfortable, queen-sized bed, right next to the window in one of the penthouse’s guest rooms. It’s not as comfortable as your bed at the arena, but it’s safer. You hope.

You’re staring at the ceiling, trying to fall asleep. The events of today are still swirling around in your head. Things feel like they’ve been moving really fast. But something makes you really want to trust Knov. There’s just something about him... maybe you’ve always just been a sucker for skinny guys in nice suits. Whatever the case, you’re certain that Palm’s presence is going to complicate things considerably. Even if Knov can teach you this “ _Nen_ ” thing or whatever, are you going to live long enough to put that knowledge into practice?

You tell yourself that’s ridiculous. Palm might be a little intense, but there’s no way she’d actually _kill_ you. Right?

As you lie there, you feel something ominous approaching you. You try to ignore the crawling of your skin, but it’s impossible to shake. Against your better judgement, you sit up in bed.

There, at the far end of the room, you see the door to your bedroom standing slightly ajar. The hallway is dark, and the only light around is the soft moonlight filtering in through the window, which casts a dim, blue glow over everything, though not enough to see clearly. The oppressive energy is getting stronger, and you feel like you’re choking on your own voice.

With great effort, you call out, asking the darkness if anyone’s there. At first, you get no response. But, after a minute of silence, you hear a sound that makes your heart drop into the pit of your stomach. It’s other-worldly and threatening. If you didn’t know better, you’d think it was the sound of a knife... scraping against the door...

The door slowly swings fully open, and your worst fear is there, standing in the doorway. She’s staring at you with those twitching, violet eyes. One hand is clutching her dress, while the other is gripping the handle of a kitchen knife so tightly, the knuckles have turned white.

Shoot, you think to yourself. This is it. You’re dead.

“[Y/N]...” she rasps, her aura thickening into a nearly-palpable black cloud, roiling and filling the room like a malevolent fog. And, though you’re certain it must be a trick of the light, it looks as if her eyes are starting to glow a sickening shade of red.

“I don’t know who you are... or where you came from...”

She lurches forward, her entire frame trembling with rage.

“But you will NOT take Master Knov from me!”

As she draws closer, her breath shaky, her knife flashing sporadically in the moonlight, you brace yourself for the inevitable. She crawls up onto the foot of your bed, her arm raised and ready to plunge into your chest. She’s practically on top of you now, and you can see the bloodlust in her eyes, feel it emanating off of her like some sort of sick pheromone... and in that moment, time seems to slow down.

This must be what it’s like... when you know you’re about to die.

With the guillotine about to drop, however, your brief clarity allows your body to break free from the paralyzing effect of Palm’s aura, just for a split second. Your survival instincts kick in, and you manage to intercept your deliverance. You grasp Palm’s wrist, stopping her swing, with the tip of the knife mere inches away from your pounding heart. Palm stares at you, wide-eyed. The murderous intensity in her expression is subtly replaced with confusion, then revelation, and you realize that... she’s blushing?

Palm lets out a quiet gasp as she gazes into your desperate eyes. Her hand loosens, and the knife drops into your lap with an innocuous _thud_.

“I... I’m sorry...” she mumbles, her lips quivering.

She pulls away from you and scrambles off your bed, darting across the room toward the door. In the doorway, she pauses, glances back at you over her shoulder, then turns away again. With a soft whimper, she steps out into the hallway, shutting the door behind her, and leaving you in bewilderment.

***

“Now, show me your _Ren_.”

Knov gestures to you as you prepare to activate your technique. The two of you are out on one of the grass-covered hills on the outskirts of the city, now seemingly far away from the Arena and the close-quarters of the penthouse. A cool breeze is winding through the area, and you hear the rustling of leaves not too far off. You look over to follow the sound and see Palm, sitting at the base of the hill near a small picnic basket. She sees you looking at her and immediately looks down to avoid eye-contact.

It’s been a couple weeks now since your training with Knov began. After the incident the other night, you never had any other life-threatening run-ins with Palm, though you have noticed her occasionally staring at you from around a corner or hiding behind some piece of furniture. Still, all things considered your training has been going surprisingly well.

You relax your body and visualize your aura as it flows through your body and out into the atmosphere. You take a deep breath, concentrate on the stillness, then exhale as the aura surrounding you bursts into life.

“Good,” Knov nods, a hand on his chin in contemplation. “You’re making solid progress.”

You relax your body again as your aura returns to its normal intensity. Knov explained to you on your first day of training that the injuries you’d suffered in Heavens Arena had served to open your “aura nodes,” allowing you to better tap into and control your natural reserves of life energy.

“I believe it’s time for us to begin working on _Hatsu_.”

Knov motions to Palm, who grabs the basket and shuffles up the hill. When she reaches you, Knov opens the basket and draws out a clear glass. He also takes a bottle of water from the basket and hands it to you.

“If you’d be so kind,” he smiles, fixing you with a curious look. “Could you pour some into the glass for me?”

You oblige, filling the glass to the brim.

“Perfect.”

Knov looks off toward the tree line and, as the breeze blows past you all again, reaches out and snatches something from the air. Opening his palm, you see he’s grabbed a stray leaf. He places the leaf on top of the water in the glass and extends it toward you.

“Place your hands on either side of the glass.”

You do so.

“This is a little technique used by _Nen_ users to determine the inherent qualities of an individual’s aura,” he begins. “Now, I’d like you to activate your _Ren_ once more.”

You center yourself again, closing your eyes. You build up the energy flowing inside of you, and release it through your hands with a burst if aura. You hear a quiet _swish_ , and suddenly Palm gasps.

“Oh my...”

You open your eyes and find, to your confusion, that the water in the glass is now tinted with a light yellow.

“M-master Knov...” Palm stutters. “The water’s changed color.”

“Indeed.”

“Then... [Y/N]’s an Emitter?”

“That would appear to be the case...” Knov murmurs, dipping a finger into the glass and sampling the water. As he does so, his eyebrows hop up with surprise, and he lets out a small noise.

“Is something wrong?”

“This isn’t water,” Knov says, handing the glass to Palm. “It’s wine.”

“What?”

“See for yourself.”

Palm takes a sip from the glass and exclaims.

“Well?”

“It’s d-definitely wine,” Palm nods, handing the glass back to Knov. “And... rather good wine, at that.”

“I’m inclined to agree,” Knov says, turning to you. He offers you the glass. “Would you like to try?”

You take the glass from Knov and drink. To your surprise, the water actually has turned into a refreshingly light, white wine.

“How intriguing,” Knov rubs his chin. “Our friend here must be a Specialist.”

“A Specialist...”

“It certainly makes sense. Between your years of dedication to the martial arts and the unique manifestation of your aura, it’s no surprise you were able to learn to control your _Nen_ so quickly. Astonishing,” Knov smirks. “I knew you had great potential.”

You’re feeling a little confused by all the terms the two of them are throwing around right now. You ask Knov what “Specialist” means.

“In _Nen_ ,” he explains, “there are six different categories. Simply put, each person is born with a natural aptitude for one of these categories. Palm, for example, is an Enhancer, meaning her aptitude lies with abilities which can _enhance_ the natural attributes of the body. I, on the other hand, am a Conjurer, who can use aura to create objects and spaces.”

“Specialists, however, are an entirely different category. In short, Specialist abilities are those which cannot be defined as belonging to one of the other five categories. And while this makes them incredibly versatile and valuable, it also makes them relatively difficult to train.”

“Normally, had you shown aptitude for one of the other categories, we would have begun your _Hatsu_ training with exercises geared toward your natural inclinations.”

Knov sighs and adjusts his glasses.

“However, since you are a Specialist, we will only be able to proceed with that when you figure out what you’d like your power to be.”

Bewildered, you ask Knov how you’re supposed to know what your power should be.

“I suggest you reflect on it. Only through understanding yourself will you discover a power that speaks to you, personally. In the meantime,” Knov cracks his knuckles, “I’d still like to introduce you to the concept of _Hatsu_ , the technique used to put one’s aura into action. Observe.”

***

That night, you’re lying in bed, thinking about what Knov had said to you earlier. After showing you his special technique, _Hide and Seek_ , he explained that a person’s _Nen_ ability must inherently be unique to them, since each _Nen_ user is experiencing the world differently. He’d asked what about you and your experiences has made you unique?

If you’re being honest with yourself, you aren’t really sure. You’d spent so much time trying to imitate the techniques of others, trying to mold yourself into a different person, that you’d lost your own sense of identity somewhere along the way. Maybe your _Nen_ ability should be something that will help you find it.

As you contemplate, you hear a very gentle knock on your bedroom door. You sit up and invite in whoever is standing in the hallway. The door slowly cracks open, and Palm sticks her head in.

“Um... hi,” she stares at you with her dinner plate eyes.

You tell her to come in and ask if there’s anything she needs.

“Oh, well, I...” she stammers, looking around the room distractedly. “I c-couldn’t sleep.”

Her stiff movements belying some sense of trepidation, Palm edges into your bedroom. She’s wearing a soft lavender nightgown, which shifts and flutters lightly as she enters. Gingerly, she takes several jerky steps towards you, watching you all the while as if expecting you to pounce if she gets too close.

You ask if there’s anything you can do for her.

“W-well,” Palm twirls her black locks nervously, “I... guess I was just wondering... if... I could maybe just... sit here...”

She’s standing at the foot of your bed now, her gaze intense, though thankfully not in the way it was those several nights ago.

You assure her that’s fine, and tell her it’s alright to relax a little bit, too.

Palm blushes.

“Th-thank you...”

She sits down on the edge of your bed, her hands balled up into fists gripping the folds of her night gown. She turns away from you so as not to make eye contact. She’s staring at the floor, but you can see her mind is racing as quickly as her heart is beating, which is to say, furiously.

You wonder if you should say something to her. Neither of you really had a plan for what happens now, and the awkwardness of the silence is palpable.

You tell her that you’ve been lying awake, too. She turns to you sheepishly, blushing again.

“R-really?”

You explain to her that you’ve been trying to figure out what your _Nen_ ability should be. This seems to deflate her a little bit, as she shrinks back and glances away.

“Oh... I see...”

You ask her if she has any suggestions.

“Oh, no,” she giggles nervously. “I couldn’t presume to tell you what _your_ ability should be...”

Well then, you ask, what’s _her_ ability?

Palm seems surprised by this question. She’s speechless for a moment, her mouth opening and closing without forming words. She furrows her brow and looks down at her arms.

“I really shouldn’t... Master Knov says I should only use it when I absolutely need to.”

You tell her it’s fine. She doesn’t have to _do_ it, she can just tell you how it works. Palm, however, shakes her head.

“My power... is difficult to explain.”

You sigh and tell her not to worry about it, then. You’re kind of disappointed, but you don’t want to push her or anything; besides, you don’t much like the thought of getting Palm upset again.

Sensing your disappointment, Palm presses her lips together. She thinks for a moment, then turns back with a little smile.

“Alright,” she says, “I can show you. But you have to promise me something.”

You’re curious. You prompt her to continue.

“You have to promise that... you won’t get scared.”

Now you’re _really_ curious. This sounds like it’ll be pretty wild, and you have this morbid desire to find out what exactly she thinks you’ll be afraid of. You ask what she means.

“Knov told me when I first developed the power that people might find it... unsettling. He says it should only be used sparingly, because it can also pose some... risks, if I use it too often.”

You tell her that she’s really got you excited to see it now. Palm seems happy to hear this, her smile spreading a little wider. She gets up from the bed and tells you to wait just a moment.

Palm returns a few minutes later, carrying with her a bizarre object. She brings it over to the bed and sets it down, and you can see that it is the dried, shriveled corpse of a creature, with a fish’s tail and the torso of a hideous monster. Its eyes are hollowed out and its mouth hangs agape. Its body is contorted unnaturally, the creature’s grotesque face almost seeming alive and writhing in agony as its brittle arms and tail prop up a large, purple, orb. The moonlight casts an ominous gleam off of the sphere, and the stark shadows falling from the magical beast’s clawed fingers threaten to pierce directly through your heart and into your soul.

You ask Palm what this thing is.

“It’s a family heirloom...” she says, gazing distantly into the depths of the orb. “A powerful crystal ball, mounted on the corpse of a merman. It may look like just a harmless curio to some, but with a little... encouragement, its true power is quite potent.”

Palm slides a knife out from under her robe, holding the blade as it shimmers, having intercepted the path of a stray moonbeam. She looks at you seriously.

“Are you scared yet?”

You shake your head. Honestly, you’re scared out of your wits, but you’re in it now. You’re determined not to chicken out just because of some spooky corpse.

Palm brings her free hand close to the maw of the merman and begins to generate some aura. She presses the blade of the knife against her palm, the sharp edge digging into her pale skin. She wraps her fingers around the blade and, with a swift motion, makes a slash across her hand, right before your eyes. She winces a little, but remains stone-faced as she squeezes her fist until a tiny rivulet of blood begins to drip out from the bottom of her outstretched hand.

The blood collects around the base of her pinky finger, pooling and swelling into a full-size droplet, until it becomes heavy enough to break away from the skin and fall, fall right into the pleading jaws of the ancient merman. The blood splashes against the shriveled tongue and rolls down into the gullet. As it does, the merman’s eyes begin to glow with dim, eerie purple. Palm squeezes harder, and a couple more drops collect inside the corpse as its eyes become more and more vibrant and the body begins to twitch and writhe.

“Who should we spy on?” Palm asks solemnly. You assume the question is rhetorical, as she does not even glance up at you.

“Cute, cute mermaid...” she chants. “Where is... Master Knov?”

The crystal ball glows slightly as mist begins to swirl around inside of it. You watch with both horror and fascination as the mist begins to dissipate. You are transfixed as Knov appears in the depths of the crystal ball. He’s standing in a spacious, well-lit area. He’s talking on his phone, though you cannot hear what he’s saying. Following his gaze, you can see that he’s watching a small television monitor, which is hanging above him on a nearby wall. Suddenly, you realize that he’s at Heavens Arena.

“Kn-Knov...” Palm whispers, trembling. “W-what is he doing there?”

You watch as Knov hangs up his phone and walks away from the television. He approaches the arena’s front desk and begins chatting with the clerk. You still can’t hear what he’s saying, but you see the woman behind the desk blush and twirl her hair.

“He left me...” Palm mutters. “He left me, he left me to talk to some... some _nobody_...”

Palm’s violent quivering is starting to worry you now. You can tell she’s getting worked up by seeing Knov traipsing about the city without telling anyone. And though you’re not the target of her rage, you’re not sure if you like the idea of Palm unleashing her manic side on anyone again.

You reach out to touch her hand, but she brushes you away. She’s now wholly focused on Knov, her entire frame twitching and shaking with unbridled fury. Her aura takes on a sickeningly familiar malevolence and begins to fill the room.

You try to call out to her, but it’s no use. It’s as if she can’t even hear you. You realize you’ll need to do something fast if you want to avoid being overwhelmed by Palm’s aura. Unsure what else to do, you try really hard to think about how Knov would handle this situation.

You try to relax. You focus your energy. You close your eyes, and...

“Palm.”

The unusual tone of your voice startles you. It also seems to draw Palm’s attention away from the merman for an instant. You realize that now is your only chance. You think back to your first day here at the penthouse, and you do what Knov did.

You stroke Palm’s awed face, taking her chin and turning her head towards you as you lean in, lean in so close you can feel each other’s sporadic breaths. And... yeah, maybe you get a little carried away and _actually_ kiss her.

Her lips are softer than you’d anticipated, and you find yourself getting a little swept-up in the moment. Palm is paralyzed by shock for a split second, but soon the tension is released and she throws herself into it. You embrace her, wrapping your arms around the small of her back as her hands fall away from the crystal ball and the vision of Knov fades away. Her aura is still excited, but the malice in it has gone as she cradles your face in her hands.

The kiss lasts only a handful of moments, but you pull away from one another feeling changed. The blood in your head is pounding as you gaze into Palm’s glistening violet eyes. You feel your heartbeats synchronize as your auras comingle, flowing through, in, and around each other, pushing and pulling against themselves as they flow like restless ocean waves under the firm guidance of a full moon.

You caress Palm’s cheek, which is now full of color, and wipe away a small tear as it breaks away from her eyelashes and begins to roll gently down the side of her face.

“Oh... sorry...” she murmurs, trying to rub the tears out of her eyes.

You smile and tell her not to worry about it. Palm’s eyes widen as she fixes you with a look which, while not particularly lustful, is certainly not lacking in desire. You brush some loose strands of hair off of her face before gingerly taking the merman statue and placing it on the floor next to the bed. You sit back up and lean in once more...

***

“You’ve got blood on your face.”

You turn your head to look at Palm, who’s lying next to you in bed with the top sheet pulled up to her chin. The moonlight is still filtering in through the nearby window, though the telltale greys of morning are beginning to form in the early sky.

“On your cheek,” she nods, “where I touched you earlier.”

You run a hand across you face and, upon finding the streak of dried blood, try rubbing it off. You can’t, so you have to get up and find a sink to wash up in. As you leave the room, you look back and tell Palm you’ll be back with a bandage for her hand. She giggles and smiles warmly at you as you walk away.

You stumble down the hallway, still a little dazed by everything that just happened. You slip into the bathroom and lock the door behind you. Washing your face in the sink, you look your reflection in the eye and smile.

The days just might start getting a little brighter around here.

***

After that, you and Palm started getting a lot closer. You trained together, went for walks around the city, and some evenings you even cooked together, sharing warm glances whenever your hands “accidentally” brushed up against one another while both reaching for the same thing. She was still her awkward, quirky self, but the things that had once struck you as off-putting were now things you found so indescribably endearing; the way she constantly played with and tugged at her hair, how she’d hold knives up in front of her to see the two of you reflected in the blade.

Knov was in and out for much of the time leading up to your big fight. He never talked about where he was going or what he was doing, but you assumed it had something to do with his preparations to win back his money when you fought again. You made a quiet promise to yourself not to let him down.

The day before your ninety days of prep time are up, Knov calls you down into the living room.

“I’m very impressed with the progress you’ve made,” he says, his arms crossed as he stares out the window toward the imposing spire of the arena. “I think you have a real chance of holding your own out there. At least, against those posers on the two-hundredth floor.”

Knov smirks and turns to you with a wicked look in his eye.

“Remember, they don’t have the same training as you do. And they certainly never had the same teacher.”

You bow politely in acknowledgement.

“We’re going down to the arena today,” Knov asserts, his attention returning to the window. “You’re going to sign yourself up for a fight tomorrow.”

You nod and thank Knov for his training and guidance. He chuckles lightly.

“Don’t thank me yet. You still have to win that fight.”

He turns over his shoulder to glance at you.

“Now, go. As soon as you’re ready, we’ll head over.”

***

Later that day, you come back down the stairs and into the penthouse’s open living room. You straighten out your clothes and fix your hair a little as you walk toward the window.

“[Y/N]!” a familiar voice calls out.

You look over, a little taken aback because you hadn’t seen anyone else in the room when you entered. But there, in the arm chair, sits an unfamiliar-looking woman. She has long, brown hair, and a warm smile on her face. She’s wearing a fashionable, yet practical, outfit of soft, pastel yellows and alluring, deep greens, and you’d be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t find her kind of attractive. She jumps up as she calls your name and rushes over to you, throwing her arms around your neck. You stare down at her with bewilderment.

She looks up at you and sees the confused look on your face.

“What’s the matter?” she asks. “Don’t you recognize me?”

You look into her eyes for a moment, and notice that they are a striking shade of violet. Could this really be...

_Palm?!_

Seeing you make the sudden realization, Palm giggles playfully.

“Sorry,” she blushes. “I must look pretty different, huh?”

You assure her that she looks amazing.

“Hee hee... stop...”

“Alright, is everyone ready?” Knov calls out as he descends the stairs. He looks up and sees the two of you by the window, cocking his head inquisitively.

Seeing him stare, Palm gets flustered and extricates herself from you.

“Y-yes, Master Knov,” she stammered, averting her gaze to the floor.

“Let’s go, then.”

Without another word, Knov crosses the room and holds open the front door. He turns and looks back at the two of you expectantly.

***

You, Palm, and Knov enter into the bustling Heavens Arena lobby. It’s been almost three months since you were last here, but you remember the way your last fight left your head swimming like it was yesterday. The bright lobby lights shine down on you apathetically, and you steel yourself for the ordeal ahead of you.

Knov glances around the room, almost as if he’s looking for someone. Palm stands uncomfortably between the two of you, staring at the floor with her hands clasped in front of her.

“Go on ahead, [Y/N],” Knov says without looking at you. “Get yourself registered. We’ll wait here in the lobby for you.”

“I-I’d like to go with them,” Palm pipes up, her eyes darting around skittishly and notably not looking at Knov. “If that’s alright, of course...”

“Why?”

“Oh! I, um...” Palm stammers, “I-I’ve never been up to the two-hundredth floor before, so I was just curious...”

“Fine,” Knov frowns, “but try not to take too long.”

Palm bows quickly, then slides over to you and hooks your arm, smiling up at you. The two of you make your way to the elevators at the far end of the lobby. You press the call button and, waiting for your carriage, turn over your shoulder to see Knov watching the both of you with a strange, almost disdainful look in his eye.

***

You arrive at the two-hundredth floor, Palm still clinging to you. You glance over at her as the elevator doors slide open. She’s staring straight ahead, her head resting on your shoulder. For the first time, you start to wonder just what exactly the dynamic between her and Knov is. Or, rather, what it _was_ , prior to your arrival in their lives. Knov always seemed to treat Palm as a fixture, a _thing_ which, while occasionally prone to erratic behavior, required only the barest amount of attention to keep placated. But while she seemed to be more of an inconvenience to him than anything else, you also sensed that Knov was fiercely protective of her. Or, perhaps, just his unchallenged access to her.

Palm was much more than that to you. You’d only known her a few short weeks, but in that time you’d seen her slowly open up and reveal the passionate, caring, remarkable woman that was usually hiding behind the anxiety and intermittent fits of homicidal rage. Yes, Palm could be intense at times, and a little obsessive, but it was her intensity that made her so special. She always felt so deeply, and wore her heart on her sleeve, and those were things you admired in her above all else.

The two of you step off the elevator together and navigate the corridors of the two-hundredth floor. You make your way to the registration desk, and sign up for your fight. You’re about to go back down to the lobby when you feel a familiar presence behind you.

“Well, well,” crooned a shallow, rasping voice. “Look who decided to come back.”

You whip around to face the man from before, the one who had “initiated” you the first time you’d reached this floor. You glance at his missing arm, his own initiation scar. His pallid, mask-like face grins maliciously at you as his hateful presence continues to wash over you.

“Are you here for another thrashing? To be honest, I could use the win.”

You grit your teeth and resist the urge to combat his aura. If you show your hand, you think, he won’t want to fight you. At least, that’s what Knov had said. And seeing as you want to help Knov get his money back so you can stop feeling indebted to him, you decide to not react.

“I must say, I’m a little surprised. Most of the people I’ve initiated learned their lesson and never came back. I’d say you’ve got a lot of nerve.”

The man chuckles hauntingly.

“It’ll be my pleasure to beat it out of you.”

“Why don’t you just leave us alone...” Palm mutters.

“What’s that? Did your girlfriend just say something?”

“I said,” Palm raises her voice a little, “Why don’t you just leave us alone?”

The man laughs again, more heartily this time.

“You’ve got some spunk, haven’t you?” he giggles mockingly, his voice dripping with patronizing venom. “Maybe once I _kill your boyfriend_ , you’ll want to come up to my room and...”

“Enough!”

Palm’s aura suddenly flares to life, staggering the man a little. She glares at him with unfiltered rage, her hands curled into trembling fists. Horribly dark energy is emanating from her, spreading a terrifying miasma throughout the floor. You’re able to weather it well enough, but the strength of her fury is intimidating, even for you.

Seeing the man’s horrified expression, you put a hand on Palm’s shoulder, trying to placate her. You assure her that everything is fine, and tell her not to bother with him. A moment or two later, Palm manages to regain her composure.

“Sorry...”

“That was a neat trick,” the man huffs. “But your girlfriend won’t be there to help you during our fight.”

He brushes past the two of you and approaches the registration counter.

“Uh, hey,” he cranes his neck to look past the desk. “I think the receptionist passed out...”

You and Palm walk back to the elevator. She seems unusually quiet, and won’t look at you. You want to say something, but aren’t sure how to comfort her.

Finally, when the two of you reach the doors, she turns to you with concern in her eyes.

“You’re going to beat that guy tomorrow, right?”

You give her a reassuring smile and nod.

This seems to put her at ease, as she relaxes a bit and grins warmly.

“Did you hear what he said, though?” she blushes as the elevator doors slide open in front of you. “He called me your girlfriend.”

***

The arena is buzzing. You’re standing in the tunnel, waiting on that fateful announcement that will usher you in to face your opponent and prove yourself, not just to Palm and Master Knov, but also to the doubts clouding your mind in this moment of anticipation.

At the far end of the tunnel, the glaring arena lights beam down on the thirty-foot-wide, square stage where your battle is to be fought. The crowd surrounding the platform is chittering with excitement. Two-hundredth-floor fights are always a spectacle, but there’s something about a grudge match that just gets the crowd going.

“And now,” came the thundering cry of the arena announcer, “it’s time to introduce the combatants!”

The crowd roars outside in the arena. You take another deep breath and center yourself.

“First up, we have Sadaso!”

Standing near the end of the tunnel, you watch the one-armed man step calmly up to the stage.

“And now, here to settle their score from last time, it’s [Y/N]!”

You step out into the harsh lights and approach your opponent.

“The last time these two faced off, Sadaso mopped the floor with [Y/N] and landed them in the infirmary!”

You grimace and stare up at the girl in the announcer’s booth. You’re not exactly proud of getting your ass handed to you last time, even if you were at a critical disadvantage.

Whatever, you think to yourself. It’s going to be different this time.

“Point system, no time limit,” shouts the referee standing in the middle of the stage. He holds his arm out, then swiftly brings it up as he jumps back to the edge.

“Begin!”

Almost immediately, Sadaso lunges toward you. He swings at you with his good hand, but you’re able to see the hit coming and duck out of the way. Suddenly, you sense a massive surge of aura from behind you. It’s just a moment too late for you to dodge, but you manage to give yourself a little extra protection using _Ten_. The blow hurts, but not nearly as much as it did three months ago.

“Clean hit!” bellows the referee. “One point to Sadaso!”

“Incredible! Sadaso came right out of the gate and somehow managed to hit his opponent from behind!”

“What’s the matter?” Sadaso taunts. “Didn’t see that one coming? What have you been doing these past three months?”

You grunt, but try to remain stoic. This is, after all, part of the plan.

“Let him get a couple hits in,” Knov had said. “It’ll get him overconfident, and push the gamblers to bet against you.”

You didn’t much like the plan involving you getting pushed around, especially now that you were more than capable of defending yourself. But if it was going to help you extricate yourself from your debt to Knov, then it was worth the humiliation.

You dash toward Sadaso and swing your left leg up to kick him. He’s easily able to catch your leg with his good hand, which is exactly what you wanted. Sadaso, forced to use his _Nen_ , activates his ability. Using a subtle form of _Gyo_ , you watch the billowing sleeve on his left side swell with aura as a spectral arm emerges and darts toward you. Again, you don’t react at all except to fortify your _Ten_ a little bit, and Sadaso’s aura arm easily swipes your right leg out from under you, dropping you to the floor.

Sadaso hops away as the referee calls the hit.

“Clean hit and Knockdown!” he waves. “Two points to Sadaso!”

The crowd is going wild now.

“Things aren’t looking so good for [Y/N],” the commentator shouts. “Sadaso’s already scored three points, and they haven’t managed to land a single hit yet!”

You pull yourself up and face Sadaso. He’s still simpering at you, but you detect the slightest change in his aura.

He’s let his guard down, you think. You’ve got him right where you want him.

“Come on, now,” he groans. “You’re making this too _easy_ for me!”

Well, if it’s a fight he wants, it’s a fight he’s about to get.

You widen your stance a little, tense up your legs, and burst forward again. You fake Sadaso out with a right jab to his left side. He falls for it immediately, diverting all of his aura into his spectral arm to block you. However, you quickly center all of your aura in your left fist and swing that instead, planting it square in the middle of his arrogant face.

Sadaso flies back, having taken the full brunt of a _Nen_ punch, and is flung outside of the arena, landing on the ground and sliding into the far wall.

The crowd roars.

“Critical hit and Knockdown! Three points to [Y/N]!”

“Unbelievable! [Y/N] just sent Sadaso flying with a single punch, tying up the match three to three!”

You watch Sadaso carefully. He remains slumped against the wall for a couple seconds, and you begin to worry you might have ended the fight before having a chance to show off your new ability. But Sadaso does stumble to his feet and return to the arena.

“I’ll admit, that wasn’t a bad punch,” Sadaso chuckles. “But now I know your technique. You won’t get another hit like that in again.”

The two of you circle each other for a moment, Sadaso trying to assess how much power you’ve been hiding this whole time, and you wondering when to just let loose and show him.

“You’re an Enhancer, I bet,” he grins. “That would make the most sense.”

So what if you are, you bark at him.

“I thought so. That should make things easier.”

Sadaso stops moving as his left sleeve flares up again.

“I’m sure you’ll remember this,” he snickers. “Behold my technique!”

The aura arm extends toward you, but you can see it now, and are easily able to evade. Grasping at nothing, the arms returns to Sadaso’s side.

“Not bad,” he smirks. “But you can’t avoid me forever.”

The two of you begin to trade blows, you easily dodging Sadaso’s strikes, and him easily blocking your physical attacks. Neither of you is able to score points, but you aren’t worried about that at all.

“Why are you even still trying?” Sadaso giggles. “You know you aren’t going to hit me.”

But you aren’t trying to hit him.

Only a minute-and-a-half into your fight, and you can tell Sadaso is showing signs of fatigue. His attacks are slowing down, and are easier to dodge. And his steps are a little shallower as the two of you dance around the arena floor.

Sadaso’s _Nen_ arm requires a lot of aura to maintain. Combining the cost of that technique with all of the _Nen_ Sadaso’s expended blocking your strikes, the toll of this fight on Sadaso’s energy reserves has been heavy. Once you’ve worn him out, you’ll be able to use your special technique, and he won’t have the energy to properly defend himself. Ducking out of the way of another strike, you think back on when you’d first proposed your power to Knov.

***

It was the morning after Palm had shown you her power for the first time. You’d had an epiphany earlier that night, and you knew what sort of power you wanted. Thinking about what made you special, you realized that you’d spent your whole life imitating others. On top of that, you were damn good at it. And while you had always seen that as a weakness, as if somehow you were less than everyone else because you couldn’t develop a technique yourself, you were beginning to think of ways this could be converted into a strength. Your natural gift was for mimicry; there was nothing shameful in that.

You’d talked to Knov about your idea for a special power, and he’d seemed intrigued. Together with Palm, you steadily built up the aura reserves and the stamina you’d need for such an ability to be effective. It had been an arduous process, but after nearly two months of working at it, you’d finally managed to shape it into a workable form. Knov had treated you and Palm that night to a celebration dinner, and your preparation for your rematch with Sadaso began in earnest.

***

Staring down Sadaso, you watch as he stands across the stage from you, heaving and out of breath. You look up at the stands, and while you can’t see Knov, you know he’s there. You turn back to Sadaso and prepare you activate your _Nen_ ability.

“What’s this? What’s [Y/N] doing now?”

Your aura swells and swirls around you, enveloping your body in an intense wrapping of energy. You begin to glow until your body is so bright it’s hard to look at.

“Under normal circumstances,” Knov had said, “such a technique shouldn’t be possible. But, seeing as you’re a Specialist, we won’t know for sure unless we try.”

You feel your aura around you, stretching and shaping your body, twisting and warping it beyond recognition.

“It sounds sort of... dangerous,” Palm had worried when you’d told her. “How can you be sure it’s safe?”

The glowing light is piercing, and the audience waits with bated breath as it lights up the backs of their screwed-shut eyelids.

“I don’t know what I’d do if anything happened to you...”

The light suddenly vanishes, and you’re left standing on the arena stage, completely unharmed, though a bit drained. Everyone slowly opens their eyes, and gasp collectively as they behold your transformation.

“Wait a minute!” the commentator shrieks. “How is this even _possible_?”

The crowd bursts with electric cacophony as Sadaso and the referee look on at you with horror.

“Somehow, there are now _two_ Sadasos in the ring!”

“What the hell?!” Sadaso’s composure dissipates. “H-how are you doing that?”

You smirk and fix him with a confident look. This is your ability, _Imposter Syndrome_ , allowing you to copy the appearance and _Nen_ abilities of anyone you can see within thirty feet of you upon activation.

Without a word, you shape your aura into Sadaso’s signature aura arm and extend it outward. Crossing it over your chest and then swinging outward, you slam Sadaso with a brutal backhand, knocking him down and sending him rolling towards the edge of the stage.

“Clean hit and Knockdown!” the referee called. “Two points to [Y/N]!”

The entire crowd is on the edge of their seats.

“ _Unbelievable_! [Y/N] has somehow transformed _into_ Sadaso, and is using his own abilities against him!”

As Sadaso staggers to his feet, you consider slapping him around until you get to ten points and win the match with a Technical Knock-Out, but remember Knov’s advice to end it quickly as soon as you pull your trump card, to give the other betters less time to put money on you.

“Y-you bastard,” Sadaso stutters. “I don’t know what sort of trick this is, but I’m not gonna let you off that easy.”

You ignore his empty threats and grab him with the aura arm. By this point, Sadaso is so fatigued that he can’t even get out of the way. Wrapping him up in your aura’s tendrils, you constrict him and stop his breathing. Sadaso’s ability is designed expressly for this purpose, to restrain and incapacitate foes. You retract the aura arm, dragging Sadaso toward you as he struggles to break free from your grasp. Soon, he is directly in front of you, paralyzed and on the verge of passing out.

“I’m sure you’ll remember this,” you whisper to him, your voice perfectly mimicking his own.

Sadaso’s eyes roll back and he goes limp. Your release the grasp of the aura arm and land one last punch with your good arm, a solid right hook to Sadaso’s jaw. Sadaso collapses on the floor, and the referee runs over to check his state.

You step away from them and begin to glow again as your aura reverts you to your original form. You drop to one knee, exhausted, but victorious.

“Sadaso has been Knocked Out! The winner is [Y/N]!”

The spectators erupt into a raucous mass of excited cheers and electrified screams.

“Incredible! I’ve never seen anything like it!”

You search for Palm in the crowd and, honing in on her charged and vibrant aura, you look up, smile, and wave before making your way off the stage and back into the arena tunnel.

***

Laying in your bed on the two-hundredth floor, you hear a knock on the door.

“[Y/N]?” Knov’s voice calls, slightly muffled by the door.

You invite him in and he slides open the door. Before he can step through, however, Palm breaks past him and rushes toward you. She kneels down by the bed and embraces you.

“You were so amazing!” she beams.

Smile back and lean forward to rest your forehead against hers.

Still standing in the doorway, Knov clears his throat. Palm blushes and hurriedly stands up, taking a couple steps back. Knov approaches the bed as well.

“You did well,” he smirks down at you. “I made back my lost money, and then some. Good job.”

You sit up and thank Knov for his training.

“There’s no need,” he shakes his head. “I was merely making an investment in your potential. An investment which, luckily, brought back significant returns.”

“I-I thought you were...really exciting to watch,” Palm stammers, twirling a strand of her hair.

Knov sighs and turns to her.

“Palm, would you do me a favor?”

“Hm?”

“I’d like for you to go down and get the car ready,” he says, pulling his keys out of his pocket and handing them to her. “There are some things I’d like to discuss with [Y/N].”

“Oh, um... of course, Master.”

Palm bows politely to Knov and gives you a little wave before stepping out of the room and closing the door behind her.

“That girl...”

Knov shakes his head.

“Look, you really did a very good job in the arena earlier,” he says seriously. “But I have some concerns.”

You ask him to elaborate.

“It’s about Palm.”

Knov pushes his glasses up to the bridge of his nose.

“I’d like you to stop seeing her.”

This catches you by surprise.

“I know there’s something going on between the two of you. There’s no use trying to hide it. Palm has been acting different these past couple of weeks and, to be honest with you, I don’t like it. It’s been... interfering, with her training.”

Knov turns away from you and walks toward the window.

“When Palm first came to me, she knew almost nothing about _Nen_. Still, everyone who came into contact with her could sense that she had incredible potential. She had just completed her Hunter Exam, and I had been selected as one of the Examiners that year. She was a bit... temperamental, even then, but even without conscious control over her aura, she had an indescribable intensity of presence. When she received her license, the Chairman of the Hunter Association suggested that one of us take her on as a student. Having encountered her aura for myself during the third phase of the exam, I volunteered, thinking how grand it would be to be Master to one of the most powerful Hunters of a generation.

“But as we began our training, I started to have... concerns, about Palm. Her aura, once unlocked, was so intense it was frightening. To this day, she’s one of the most naturally powerful Enhancers I’ve ever met. But she had so little control over her energy. She would drain herself out rapidly, and had difficulty maintaining _Ten_ and _Ren_ for extended periods of time. She would lose her temper, and fly into destructive rages. She was volatile.

“I did my best to temper her, to teach her self-control, but I could only do so much. I mean, you’ve seen how dangerous she can be. And then, of course, there’s her ability.

“She’s shown it to you, hasn’t she?”

Knov looks at you expectantly. You slowly nod.

“I’d assumed as much. Then you know how risky it can be for her.”

Knov shakes his head as he turns back to the window.

“ _Merman Clairvoyance_... a power that give Palm the ability to view anyone she’s ever seen through a crystal ball, at the price of her own blood. It’s terrifying. And, used for the wrong purposes, it could be used as a terrible weapon.”

You ask what he means.

“I’m not a fool. I know there are others out there who would see Palm’s ability the same way I do. And her being the way she is, she’d be all too easy to exploit. Think about it for a moment: reconnaissance missions, intelligence gathering, and the ability to monitor anyone you wish whenever you wish it, so long as Palm has seen them before? The utility of _Merman Clairvoyance_ is unquestionable.

“That is why I can never let her go. To unleash someone like Palm onto the world... well, _she_ wouldn’t even be ready for that. No, she must stay with me. I’m the only one who can keep her under control. And I’m the only one who can be trusted not to exploit her powers for evil.”

You try to tell Knov that he sounds crazy, that Palm is a person, too, a person who should be allowed to make her own decisions. Knov waves you off dismissively.

“You say that, sure. But you don’t know Palm like I do. Besides, how is what you’re doing any different?”

You explain that it _is_ different, because you aren’t trying to control Palm or coerce her. Your relationship is built on genuine feeling and intimacy. You’ve never tried to deceive each other or “use” each other; you’re just happy together.

Knov laughs at this.

“Happy, hm? You think you can make Palm happy? You’re delusional. She isn’t capable of _true_ happiness. She’s obsessive. She’s paranoid. And should you ever make her upset, she would not hesitate to kill you. And you think you can be ‘happy’ together?”

You tell Knov that if that’s his opinion of Palm, then he really doesn’t know her as well as he thinks he does.

“This conversation is pointless,” Knov sighs. “You’re going to break things off with Palm, and then I’m taking her back to Swardani City.”

You start to say that’s ridiculous, but Knov silences you with a finger.

“You may have potential, [Y/N], but you are still woefully inadequate if your aim is to defy me.”

He straightens his tie and starts heading for the door.

You tell Knov to wait and try to get out of bed, but you’re still exhausted from your earlier fight with Sadaso. When you try to stand, you simply fall back down on the mattress.

“I suggest you rest here tonight. Tomorrow, hopefully, you’ll have come around and we’ll be able to put this all behind us.”

You glare after him as he exits your room, leaving you helpless and enraged.

***

You wake up the next morning to a feeling of profound emptiness. You’d lain awake most of the previous night, turning your situation over and over in your mind until your head ached. And yet, try as you might, you weren’t able to envision a scenario in which Knov didn’t get his way. You simply weren’t prepared to go toe-to-toe with him, and he could still manipulate Palm better than anybody. He abused her trust, abused her respect, and as angry and frustrated as that made you, there was nothing you could do about it right now. All you could do was hope that Palm would understand, and that you’d be able to be together again someday.

As you lie there, contemplating the revelations of the night before, you hear a heavy knock on the door. Sitting up, you ask who’s there.

The door slides open to reveal a broad-shouldered man in a grey shirt and red tie. He’s big, with beefy hands, tanned skin, and a strong chin. The sleeves of his shirt are rolled up to the elbow, and a small pair of dark sunglasses are perched atop his crooked nose. His white, shoulder-length hair falls along the sides of his face, and he smiles sheepishly as he looks into your room.

“Hey,” he waves.

You ask if you know him.

“Ah, no, probably not.”

His voice is deep, but warm.

“The name’s Morel. I’m kind of a friend of Knov’s.”

Seeing your eyes fill with suspicion, Morel shakes his head.

“No, he didn’t send me here to harass you, if that’s what you’re thinking. This is a personal visit.”

He adjusts his tie and sticks his hands into the pockets of his black pants.

“May I come in?”

After a moment, you nod. He doesn’t strike you as malicious at all, so you figure you’ll at least hear him out.

“Thanks,” he says, crossing the threshold. He slides the door closed behind him and goes to lean against a nearby wall.

“Knov’s told me a lot about you, you know,” he grins, his muscular arms crossed. “It’s not every day someone with as much potential as you happens along.”

You thank Morel for the compliment, but tell him you aren’t particularly interested in Knov’s praise.

“Yeah, I figured you say something like that.”

His brow furrows.

“Look, Knov told about your... situation. And, just so you know, I don’t normally involve myself in the affairs of others. But, well... Knov has a tendency to be pretty insensitive.

“It’s pretty terrible, actually,” Morel chuckles. “The rest of us are always getting on his case about it.”

You ask Morel why he came.

“Right,” he sighed heavily. “Look, I know this is probably the last thing you want to hear right now, but... I think you should just let Palm go.”

You open your mouth to object, but Morel cuts you off.

“Now, I know that the last thing you want to do is let Knov keep being in charge of her. Hell, I hate it, too. But the old man was right to push her on him.”

Morel shakes his head.

“Palm is a brilliant girl. She has the potential to be one of the best of us. But she’s not in control of her own emotions. For a Hunter, that’s as much a weakness as it is an asset. There’s only one person I know who can train her in the way she needs to be trained. And that’s Knov.”

You bow your head and rest it in your hands. You know, deep down, that Morel is right. Palm needs more training if she’s going to reach her full potential. Taking her away from the one master who can work with her would be selfish, and would only hurt her in the long run.

“Look, I know this is hard,” Morel walks over to you and places a reassuring hand on your shoulder. “But it’s for the best. I’m sure you care about her, but if you stick around, you could end up doing more harm than good for Palm. You get that, don’t you?”

You nod, jostling the teardrops beginning to form along your eyelids.

“Good. Well, I’d better be going. I just wanted to come by and talk to you before Knov gets here.”

He gives you a little pat on the back and begins heading for the door. Before he leaves, he turns around to face you again.

“Hey, [Y/N],” he says.

You look up at him with forlorn eyes.

“You should take the Hunter Exam next year. You seem like you’d be cut out for it. Not to mention you’re already a _Nen_ user.” 

Morel adjusts his sunglasses and smirks.

“Give it some thought. I promise,” he chuckles, “we aren’t all like Knov.”

***

A couple hours later, you’re standing at your window, thinking on what Morel had said. Suddenly, the phone on your nightstand begins to ring.

You pick up the phone and answer it. It is the receptionist in the arena lobby. She informs you that a couple have come to call on you, and that they’re on their way up the elevator now. You thank her and hang up.

Sighing deeply, you walk over to the bathroom mirror and inspect your appearance. You straighten out your clothes and fix your hair. If Palm is going to remember you, you think, you at least want her to remember you looking decent.

You step out into the hallway of the two-hundredth floor and begin making your way toward the elevators. Your steps are heavy, and you feel as if your heart is lost in an oppressive stupor. This is going to be very difficult for you, and you aren’t sure you’ll be able to do it. But you know Morel was right, and that, for now at least, this is the best thing for Palm.

You arrive at the elevator just as the doors slide open. Knov and Palm step out onto the floor, and your heart sinks at how happy Palm looks to see you again.

Palm runs over to you and throws her arms around your shoulders, but you don’t look at her. Knov is staring at you from the elevator, and you are staring right back. He nods toward you knowingly and leans against the wall.

You sigh and fix him with dagger-eyes before turning to Palm. She’s looking up at you now, he face beaming. Even now, when you’re about to break her heart, you can’t help but be amazed by how beautiful she is.

You push her away gently, and she looks at you with confusion.

“What’s wrong, [Y/N]?” she asks.

You tell her it’s nothing. But you can’t even bring yourself to look her in the eyes anymore.

You take a deep breath and begin. You tell her that the past three months have been the greatest in your life. You tell her that you’ve never known anyone who even comes close to comparing to her. You tell her that she’s the greatest thing that’s ever happened to you, and that you love her more than anything else in the world. It’s all true.

But.

You hesitate for a moment. You steal a glance at her face and you can see she’s bracing herself for the worst. Whenever someone starts listing like that, there’s always a “but.” Your brain tries to stop you, to stop the inevitable “but,”... but, of course, it’s futile. Your eyes lose their focus as you remove yourself from your situation, allowing yourself to talk without hearing your own words. You know it’s cowardly, and selfish, to spare yourself from the torment you’re putting Palm through, but there are some things that must be done, and some things that must be said.

When it’s over, your eyes slide back into place and you confront Palm’s wide, glistening eyes.

Finally, you tell her you’re sorry.

“You... you don’t want to see me anymore?” she murmurs, her voice choking back tears.

You tell her yes, that unfortunately that’s the way things have to be for now.

“You don’t want to see me?” she repeats.

You try to comfort her, but you aren’t sure what else to say. You reach out to put a hand on her shoulder, but she swats it away.

“You don’t want to see me... you don’t want me...” she mutters, turning her gaze to the floor.

You try reaching out again, but suddenly notice that her body is shaking.

“You don’t want me...” she snarls. “You don’t want me... you don’t like me... you hate me!”

Palm’s head snaps back up to look at you, her eyes wild.

Oh shit, you think to yourself as Palm’s overpowering, malicious bloodlust begins radiating toward you, filling the hallway. You’ve really gone and done it now.

“You _lied_ to me!” she shouts at you, her body nearly in convulsions. “You _lied_! You _never_ wanted me! You _never_ cared! You were just taking _advantage_ of me!”

You slowly start to back away from her, knowing that you’ll need to find an exit. Fast.

“Ooh, Master Knov warned me about this... But I was an _idiot_!” she screams, her hands clawing at her hair, disheveling it wildly. “I shouldn’t have trusted you! I shouldn’t have! You _lied_ to me!”

You glance up at Knov for help, but he stares back at you coldly, as if to say this is your punishment for getting involved with Palm in the first place.

Son of a bitch, you think to yourself.

You decide that your best option in this moment is to run and try to put as much distance between yourself and Palm, and hope that you’ll be able to double back later and escape. You turn around and dash toward the other end of the hall.

“Hey!” Palm shouts after you. “Where do you think you’re going?”

Your feet are pounding against the carpeted floors as your brain races to think of somewhere to hide. Palm breaks into a sprint behind you, and you know you won’t have too much time to figure out a plan.

You turn a corner and begin running down one of the two-hundredth floor’s long corridors. Palm would know to look for you in your room, you think. There’s got to be somewhere else... the Registration Desk!

The Registration desk is at the end of this hallway, you think to yourself. You just have to make it there ahead of Palm, and you should be safe. You turn your head to look behind you and are terrified to see Palm charging after you at an alarming speed, gaining on you with every step. You turn back, put your head down, and try to push yourself to run faster.

With Palm almost breathing down your neck, you decide to scrap the previous plan. Your mind racing to think of something else, you turn the next corner and find yourself barreling toward the desk clerk, who must have come down from the desk to check on what all the screaming was about. Something in your brain clicks at that moment, and you begin to glow...

Moments later, Palm rounds the corner as well. She’s panting heavily, but still burning with impassioned fury. She stops for a moment and looks down the hallway. She’s appears slightly confused, likely because she doesn’t see any trace of you anywhere. Instead, all she sees are two terrified-looking young women dressed in Heavens Arena uniforms.

“Did somebody run through here just now?” she rasps, her eyes red and menacing, her shadowy aura filling everyone on the floor with abject terror.

“N-No, ma’am,” the desk clerk whimpers.

Palm growls with frustration.

“DAMN IT!”

Her body is twitching and shaking, and you cling to the desk clerk, whose likeness you copied using _Imposter Syndrome_. Knov soon appears and places his hands on Palm’s shoulders.

“There, there,” he croons. “It’s fine now. You can let it go.”

“But they... they _lied_ to me...” Palm retches, her furious shivering giving way to heaving sobs.

“I know,” Knov murmurs, stroking Palm’s hair. “I know. But you don’t have to worry about that now. They’re gone, and you won’t have to worry about them anymore.”

“Oh, Master Knov...” Palm wails, her dark aura receding. She turns around and buries her face in Knov’s chest, crying heavily.

It’s extremely uncomfortable to watch, both for you and the clerk next to you. You look up at Knov who, to your surprise, is staring at you as well. He nods once more in your direction, somehow managing to perceive your true identity through your disguise.

Knov leads Palm away and, once her despairing cries are no longer audible, you thank the clerk profusely and revert back to your normal self. The clerk just nods uncomfortably and, slightly dazed, walks back to the desk at the end of the hall.

Your head hanging low, you wander around the two-hundredth floor for the next several hours, just marinating in your own regret. Fighters come and go from their rooms, heading over to the arenas to prove themselves, but you don’t even notice them.

Eventually, you end up back at your room. You stumble wearily to the window and look out over the city, now cloaked in the darkness of night, the lights twinkling hundreds of feet below you.

The world seems so small from up here, you think.

In the distance, an airship takes off from the airport on city outskirts. It is an impressive sight, flying resolutely off into the night. On its side is emblazoned the famous symbol of the Hunter Association. You think back to Morel’s suggestion.

Maybe if you were a Hunter...

As the blimp disappears over the mountainous horizon, you make a promise to yourself. You’re going to become a Hunter. You’re going to train. And, one day, you’re going to give that bastard Knov a piece of your mind.


End file.
